I have a whole collection of strange, funny, weird, odd experiences in the temple.


It was the oddest place! I never knew what was going to happen next.

The temple is probably the most peculiar of all Mormon experiences and I have had several really strange, funny and horrible experiences while attending. They began the day I was married and never quit.

Just something simple like women stepping on the short train of my wedding gown while going from room to room, stopping me in my tracks, ruining my gown and nearly tearing it off me, and then losing track of my disabled mother were very unsettling and nerve racking the first time I attended the temple.

Then there was a big discussion about the shoes I brought. They had a teeny-tiny heal was accepted, rejected, accepted, rejected and finally accepted! They sent me back and forth finally letting me wear them.

Second time going to the temple, less than a year later.....

No one explained to me that my husband would not be taking me through the "veil" at the end of the session (with the five points of fellowship, which I found totally inappropriate) on subsequent visits. So, when I went to the temple the second time, I waited and waited and wouldn't leave my seat because I was waiting to be taken to my husband! I couldn't figure out what was going on with people getting up and going out in rows. What was I supposed to do? So, I stayed put.

A temple worker approached me an I explained my dilemma to her, she first tried to show me who was behind the veil and assured me it would be okay.

Well... naturally, I assumed it was going to be my husband, instead, it was a huge South Pacific man (Samoan?) standing there grinning.

That did it! I started to cry. I couldn't understand what had happened to my husband and who was that man??? She thought I was prejudiced and tried to assure me that he was okay, lost her patience and fussed at me about not going through the veil.

But, I refused to leave my seat! When I continued to refuse to up to the veil and do the five points of fellowship with that strange man, , another patron chastised me for "making a scene" stomped off in a huff. I sat there and cried.

Finally, when I wouldn't budge and was holding up the session, someone asked me for my husbands name and went and got him so he could do the "officiating" at the veil! That experience left me so shaken that I refused to go for a year. But, then I relented and went again!

It never occurred to anyone that it would be a good idea to let people know they would be acting out death oaths in the temple either. Another example of no full disclosure. I was only 21 years old at the time and would like to have known ahead of time about that little part of the ritual. The only thing that kept me from being terrorized was the HOPE that they were figurative, and I was in such a state of surprise and shock over the whole temple experience, I couldn't remember what it was I was not to divulge anyhow. :-)


SLC Temple:

On one visit to the Salt Lake City Temple, we were waiting in the chapel for the rest of our group of friends when I saw them in another area. I got up and left the chapel to tell them where we were. When I returned, a male temple worker stopped me by put his hands out completely blocking the isle and said I couldn't go through the session because I had left my place and the session was closed. He continued to stand there and block my passage. No amount of explaining that my husband was still there and I left for a minute would budge him from his position.

I saw my bewildered husband at the back of the room, and noticing another door, left and came in the back door and joined my husband and friends. Then I tried to get out without the temple worker seeing me. I was sure he was going to grab me and refuse to let me by again. But, I guess he forgot because he didn't even notice when I walked by him.


Another strange experience:

One of the most disturbing things happened as I came out of the washing and anointing area, clothed in that silly tunic wrapped shut over my long temple garments. I was in a new, unfamiliar new temple (I forget which one), when I had gotten turned around and lost my way. I walked past several temple workers standing at their posts and walked in the wrong direction and opened the door to the big waiting room with people in their street clothes.

Fortunately, one of the workers woke up as I opened the door and stopped me before I walked out there. I can still see the bewildered looks on the faces of that crowd!:-)



LA Temple:

Another time, while waiting for my party to leave, I was approached by a temple worker who, completely out of the blue, grasped my hand in a death grip after the session and asked if I had done the temple work for all of my family. When I mentioned that I did not know who my father was, he told me that I would never be able to enter the Celestial Kingdom, etc., etc., until I "forgave him."

Well, I tried to explain that I didn't even know my father and had nothing to forgive, however, this information fell on deaf ears and he proceeded with his mission of instructing me, all the while continuing to hold fast onto my hand with both of his. Fortunately, a male friend in our party got him to release his grip and got me away from him. That was just too weird! I never did figure out why he grabbed me, a total stranger and went on a tirade. Senile maybe?

MISC:

Remember the female workers with their little pockets full of emergency supplies? I got a chewable vitamin C one time when I was having an allergy attack.



This one I won't forget!

Sometimes a little humor lightens the mood of a dull, repetitive temple session.

Many years ago, I attended the temple with a group from our Ward. One of the ladies was a very small spry (probably about 80 yr old) widow, who had recently lost her large built 90+ year old husband

She arrived with us at the temple , carrying her matching suitcase with the temple garb. Remember those!?

When she opened it, she realized she had her deceased husbands suitcase!
Laughingly, she remarked that she probably gave them the wrong suitcase for her husband's burial, and she wondered if he was buried in her temple clothes. (Not likely as those are different - but she probably didn't know that.)

Not to be deterred, she put on his one piece men's garments! She didn't have quite enough clothes in her size, so one of the matrons brought some for her.

The three of us women, who knew what happened could barely keep our faces straight through the session knowing she was wearing her deceased husbands, very large, men's garments, which she later remarked were more comfortable than her own!


I remember those sashes and especially how much trouble some of the older man had keeping them in the right place. When he pulled on it it went whosh... came completely out!

It was not uncommon for the whole temple session to be held up while someone helped the guy re-thread his string into his robe! :-) The solution was so simple. Sew them in!
But NO .... that didn't happen!

And there are many more!

Share yours! Please!

Well mine wasnt that strange. Just felt scared throughout. And the new temple name was odd. But what was really odd is the continual costume changes. I had a member help me through all that. When we finally got thru the veil, I saw people crying. It had no effect on my spirit.

I was very thankful to finally get out of there. Never been back since

abacab08 Wrote:
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> Well mine wasnt that strange. Just felt scared
> throughout. And the new temple name was odd. But
> what was really odd is the continual costume
> changes. I had a member help me through all that.
> When we finally got thru the veil, I saw people
> crying. It had no effect on my spirit.
>
> I was very thankful to finally get out of there.
> Never been back since


I can understand your experience! I know folks who went once and didn't go back. One woman borrowed my temple clothes and returned them and quietly left.She did not have a happy look on her face!

I didn't scare easily as I had been an entertainer and performer for several years so I was pretty tough -- but it was all very....odd to say the least.

I don't scare easy either but I was under the morg had something better than the Catholic Church so I converted. It was foolish in hindsight, but my ex kept pushing us to convert. I was not going to Catholic Church for quite a while due to pedophiles, but joined a church with a history of polygamy? Darn missionairies and their lies

I haven't had anything ridiculously strange.

A few experiences though.

For a while I went to the temple every week. I often did initiatories. One time they had me sit in for someone training. I had the whole thing memorized by that point. The poor guy has serious problems with stuttering and memorization. It was clear he was never going to be able to do it. Yet they put him through the humiliation of training him. I saw him around the temple a lot after that but never after initiatory.

I ran into a girl I dated in my late teens. If you've read my other posts you know I have a difficult marriage. I only spoke to her for a couple of minutes in a Little Ceasers. But it really threw me for a loop. I spent several days wondering where my life would be had I not been stupid and let our relationship end a few months before my mission - what life would have been like if I married her. I spent a lot of time hoping that she was happy in her marriage and that her husband treated her well - I even penned a song about it titled "does he tell you that your beautiful". The only song I ever wrote - I think it was pretty good. The last of the 3 versus was about how I needed to tell my wife she is beautiful and treat her well because there is someone out there that probably wished he married her and that I need to let the grass is greener stuff go under the bridge and focus on my wife. Again sitting in initiatory I was thinking about her (the ex girlfriend) and teared up. The guy doing the initiatory that I was so touched by the iniatory that I was crying and commented about how amazing the blessings are. I just nodded at him probably with a very strange look on my face.

The second best experience in the temple was getting in a deaf session to alleviate the boredom a little with trying to learn a little ASL.

The best experience was falling asleep before day 1 in the creation and not waking up until the first please rise, falling back to sleep, and only being conscious for about 40 seconds of the entire movie. That was probably my record - only being conscious for 5 minutes of the movie was pretty common.

I always loved the part of the movie that showed off the beauty of the earth (when I stayed awake for it). They really have done an excellent job in that regard, IMO. Probably the most spiritual part of Mormonism for me - I am easily moved by the beauty of nature.

I miss sitting with my wife holding hands in the Celestial room although I typically just wanted to get out of there as fast as possible at the time.

Knowing all the lines of every ordinance by heart and seeing people screw it up all over the place.

Having a son named Adam and saying things like "Adam, Adam where art thou?" - obviously I do this VERY rarely to not offend my wife - I mostly just think it and chuckle.

Thanks for sharing your experiences ronas.

I can relate to several of them. I too slept off and on!

I was mesmerized by the nature shots.

I am a musician and have written music.

I had some very personal experiences I would call: spiritual over the years while in the temple. I did enjoy the peace and quiet. Not being interrupted. I could meditate, think, and just relax.
It was "dress ups" time though and the attire seemed a little silly, but, hey, everyone else was doing it...! :-) It was: Tradition!! :-)

I heard from a reliable source about two guys making out in the endowment room. They were asked to leave and did. Technically, if gays have the same status as single M-F adults, then they should not have been asked to leave.

Joe Laban Wrote:
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> I heard from a reliable source about two guys
> making out in the endowment room. They were asked
> to leave and did. Technically, if gays have the
> same status as single M-F adults, then they should
> not have been asked to leave.


Well, yes, it's not a "make out" room. :-) Goes for everyone! It's just a waiting room with a short wait, usually. Men and women go through different areas, so spouses will wait for the other one so they can leave together at the end of the ordinances. The rooms are nice, but nothing that spectacular.